Laundry machines are domestic or industrial utensils widely used to assist in cleaning clothing or fabrics. Among the laundry machines, certain constructive embodiments are known, such as small tanks, front loading machines and top loading machines.
The so-called “small tanks” refer, generally, to a device substantially in the shape of a common tank, but which have a small turbine coupled to a motor, both mounted on the lower portion of the tank. The motor with the turbine just has the function of agitating the water contained on the inside, in order to assist in the process of washing the fabrics, but other automated functions related to the washing cycle, such as the rinse, spin etc. are not present. These small tanks are normally devices of simple construction, and generally also do not present specific compartments to store and dispense products for cleaning and fabric care, such as soap, softener, bleach etc.
In relation to the washing machines that comprise full wash cycles, such as the steps of washing, rinsing, spinning, etc., front loading and top loading are the ones mainly known.
Front loading machines present the opening and door to access inside the machine, where the wash tub is contained, in the front part of the machine, while in top loading ones, access inside the washing compartment is made by an opening in the upper portion of the machine.
However, working principle of these laundry machine models is similar, and consists of a perforated tub, in order to allow the passage of water and/or of the cleaning agents of the fabrics, and the agitation of the fabrics inside the wash tub in two directions, both clockwise and anti-clockwise. After washing and rinsing, normally there is a spin cycle, which is designed to eliminate the excess water contained in the fabrics, so as to facilitate the subsequent drying thereof. In the spin cycle, the tub rotates in just one direction at a relatively high rotation, such as 500, 1,000 RPM or more.
Although the front and top loading machines present similar working principles, as described above, there is a substantial difference in their constructions. For front loading machines, the rotation axis of the tub is in a horizontal position centralized thereto, and the tub moves and the laundry agitate inside the tub due to the action of gravity, that is, the fabrics contained inside the wash tub have a natural tendency to displace to the lower part of the tub while it is turning. Wings mounted on the inner sides of the tub can also be used to assist the agitation of laundry.
On the other hand, in top loading machines, the wash tub generally is stopped, and the rotation axis of the drive motor is in a vertical position. Due to the action of gravity, since clothes tend to agglomerate at the bottom of the tub, it is necessary to create a mechanical action in order to assist the agitation of the clothes. Accordingly, said top loading machines generally present a central element, mounted inside the tub and coinciding with the centerline of the rotary axis of the drive motor. This element can be an impeller. The impeller, as the name itself suggests, has the function of creating a movement of the water inside the tub and create a mechanical action in the clothes in order to assist in the cleaning of the fabrics and avoid accumulating in the lower portion of the tub. For this purpose, it is common for impellers to have hydrodynamic profiles to promote agitation of the water and of the fabrics inside the tub when immersed in water.
Today there is a growing concern for so-called ‘green’ products and services or, in other words, products and/or services that help minimize the environmental impact by their use or manufacturing. The consumers are evermore appreciative of products and services that bear differentiating aspects relating to protection or to care with the environment. Oftentimes, these “green” characteristics can be the competition difference between one product or service in relation to its competitors.
In the case of laundry washing machine, there is also a growing need to offer a product that consumes a lesser quantity of water during a washing cycle, to minimize the environmental impact relating to the washing and to the care of the fabrics.
Document U.S. Pat. No. 5,241,843 presents a laundry machine that uses reservoirs mounted on the side of the machine to store and reuse the water from prior washes. However, in the embodiment shown in this document, the size, and particularly the width, of the machine is significantly increased due to the water storage tanks, which makes the device extremely large and hardly practical to use, chiefly for inhabitants of large urban centers, who tend to live in ever smaller constructed areas.
Publication WO 2008/079070 discloses a laundry machine that is designed to save water during washing, but the storage of the water is only carried out in the tank that encircles the wash tub, and accordingly makes use of pumps to maintain the level of water inside the tank below the level of the tub to allow the recirculation of water. The proposed solution, therefore, is hardly practical because it requires the constant use of recirculation pumps and is limited in relation to the quantity of water that can be stored.
The present invention is designed to overcome these drawbacks, among others.